Manufacture of coke.



No. 680,783. Patented Aug. 20, I905. W. J. MM.

MANUFACTURE 0F COKE.

(Application filed Oct. 5, 1900.

(No Model.)

lUNllTlED Snares ATENT rrrcn,

\VILLTAM JOHN KNOX, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE, OF SAME PLACE.

MANFACTURE @F COKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 680,783, dated August 20, 1901. Application filed October 5,1900. Serial No. 32,116. (No specimens.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that LVVILLIAM JOHN KNOX, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Mannfacture of Coke, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an improvement in the manufacture of coke; and to this end it consists in a new and improved process of manufacturing coke by supplying heat to the interior of a coke-oven above the bed of fuel by means of a fluid heatcarrier, such as the evolved bituminous gas, and saving the volatile by-products, which are ordinarily permitted to go to waste.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view, partlyin side elevation and partly in section, of aconstruction adapted to illustrate my invention; and Fig. 2, a plan View of the construction shown in Fig. 1.

My invention provides a new and improved process of making coke for metallurgical purposes by introducing a heated gas into the interior of a coke-oven above the body of fuel and liberating heat from the gas within the oven by direct radiation, by contact with the coal or coke and with the walls and arch of the oven, and then by radiation from the walls and arch of the oven. The coking action resembles in some respect what is known as the beehive process in supplying the heat from above and acting downward on a comparatively thin broad layer of coking coal, which is free to expand, and the oven may be of the same general form as the beehive oven or the Welsh or Thomas oven. It differs from the beehive process, however, in not supplying air for the combustion of the fuel within the oven, the doors or openings 14 and the charging-openings 15 being com pletely closed during the process, the charge of coal being converted into coke by baking from above by the action of heat carried into the oven from the outside by the fluid carrier.

As shown in the drawings, a superheater 1 for heating the gas supplied to the coking ovens or ovens is connected by means of a pipe or passage 2 with one of the ovens 8, so as to deliver the heated gas into the space 4 above the level of the body of fuel 5, and each oven is connected with the next by means of the passage or flue 6, so that the spaces 4 and fines 6 form a continuous passage for the hot gas. The last oven in the series may be connected by a pipe or passage 7 with a superheater 8, into which the gases from the ovens may be discharged and sufliciently heated to fix the hydrocarbons, after which they may be discharged through a pipe 9, connected with the inlet to a fan or blower 10, from which they are discharged through the outlet 11 into the pipes 12 and 13. Through the pipe 12 a quantity of gas sufficient to form a carrier for the heat required in the ovens is delivered to the superheater 1, from which it passes through the pipe 2 to the ovens. The pipe 13 may lead to a holder or to any connection, from which the gas may be distributed for any purpose. The passages 15 are for charging purposes only and the passages 14. for withdrawing the coke, and both of these passages in each of the ovens are kept closed, so as to exclude air and prevent the ordinary process of combustion which occurs in beehive ovens as heretofore employed.

Since no air is admitted to the oven and all of the heat for cookingis introduced by means of the hot gas into the closed interior of the oven there will be no combustion of the volatile hydrocarbons, and they may be saved as valuable by-products, and an excellent quality and a relatively large quantity of coke will be produced.-

By means of my invention the heat neces sary to the coking process is employed in the most efficient manner by being carried in by means of the fluid heat-carrier instead of being supplied from the outside through the thick walls of poor conducting material, as in some by-product ovens.

It will be seen that with my improved process the resulting hydrocarbon or bituminous gases may be drawn off unaltered and may be treated in any desired Way for separation of illuminating-gas, tar, ammonia, or other products. For example, they may be passed through hot checker-work in a superheater of the kind already referred to, through a vessel containing incandescent coke, through an atmospheric pipe-condenser, or through a scrubber, in which the gases may be washed by water.

The original supply of gas may be derived from an external source of gas or a separate producer, or by first heating the superheaters in any convenient manner and then circulating the contents of the system which in the first instance would contain air the oxygen would be burned and a gas produced. This circulation can be continued until a good quality of illuminating and heat-carryin g gas is obtained.

The heated gas as it passes above the coal in the coking-chamber cokes the upper'surfaces, and in doing so the coke itself becomes highly heated and gradually transmits the heat downward to the lower layers, and as the depth of the coke increases the depth to which suflicient heat to carry on the distillation penetrates will increase, so that gradually the whole charge of coal will be destructively distilled or coked.

It has heretofore been proposed to transmit heated gases through the body of coal either upward or downward; but such processes result in a porous form of coke, whereas my process produces a solid hard coke especially desirable for metallurgical and smelting purposes.

The gas as it comes from the last cokingoven of the series passes,as already described, to the superheater and then is carried forward, a portion being drawn off and the remainder reheated and caused to repeat its circuit. The fixing-chamber serves to remove the condensable hydrocarbons, so that the gas drawn off will be in a condition to be delivered through pipes, and also the portion which is circulated again to the superheater will not deposit tar at the cold end of the superheater.

In another application, series of 1900, Serial No. 36,515, which is a division of this ing a portion of the gas thus formed to be reheated and to retraverse the same circuit.

2. The process of manufacturing coke which consists in conveying the necessary heat into the coking-chamber by a current of externally-heated gas above the charge of coal and employing a portion of the gas thus produced to continuously act as a heat-carrier for continuing the process.

3. The process of manufacturing coke which consists in conveying the necessary heat into the coking-chamber by a current of externally-heated gas above the charge of coal and employing a portion of the gas thus produced to continuously act as a heat-carrier for continuing the process, thereby gradually coking the contents of the coking-chamber from the top toward the bottom.

4. The process of treating coal in the manufacture of coke which consists in conveying the necessary heat into the coking-chamber by a current of externally-heated gas above the charge of coal, employing a portion of the gas thus produced to continuously act as a heat-carrier for continuing the process, and withdrawing and utilizing the remainder of the gas.

Signed at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, this 1st day of October, A. 'D. 1900.

- WILLIAM JOHN KNOX.

Witnesses:

R. J. BRATTON, CHAs. F. MILLER. 

